SABMiller is attractive to AB InBev due to the London-listed brewer’s large operations in the high-growth emerging markets of Africa, South America and eastern Europe which will help AB InBev reduce its reliance on the tough U.S. beer market

“Over 90 percent of AB InBev’s earnings come from America, so a move for SABMiller would create a real powerhouse with big operations on six continents,” said another banker.

It would be the largest cash takeover in the beer industry since InBev bought Anheuser-Busch for $52 billion in 2008. It would also likely require SABMiller to sell off the U.S.-based MillerCoors into its own company.